Pizza Pot Pie

I'm sure most of you are like me and that you see a recipe you like, you tear it out, and stick it somewhere... folder, recipe box, etc. This usually works for me except in the occasion where I tear out the page and find out later the recipe was continued onto another page which I didn't tear out. Oops!! So goes the story of this recipe... I was halfway into cooking when I realized my mistake and didn't have time to internet search the rest of the recipe. Oh well, I had the ingredients and step one of the directions -- so I went for it.

Below is the recipe as found on the internet this morning, Southern Living. What I did, which worked great too, and was much easier, is in the tips below that-- I did a poor job following the recipe but dinner was great nonetheless. Enjoy!

Ingredients

3/4 pound ground beef

1/4 pound mild Italian sausage

1 small onion, chopped

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 package sliced fresh mushrooms

1 (26-oz.) jar tomato-and-basil pasta sauce

1/2 teaspoon dried Italian seasoning

1/4 teaspoon salt 1 package refrigerated pizza crust dough

1 cup (4 oz.) shredded Italian five-cheese blend

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 450°. Cook ground beef and sausage in skillet until no longer pink. Drain. Reserve about 2 Tbsps of drippings for next step.

2. Sauté onion in hot drippings 2 minutes. Add garlic, and cook 1 minute or until tender. Add mushrooms, and sauté 8 to 10 minutes or until most of liquid has evaporated. Stir in beef mixture, pasta sauce, Italian seasoning, and salt. Bring to a light boil, and simmer 5 minutes.

3. Meanwhile, unroll dough on a lightly floured piece of parchment paper. Invert 1 (9-inch) round baking dish or pie plate onto center of dough. Cut dough around edge of baking dish, making a 9-inch circle. Remove excess dough around baking dish; cover and chill.

4. Pour beef mixture into baking dish, and sprinkle with cheese. Immediately top with dough circle. Cut an "X" in top of dough for steam to escape. Place baking dish on an aluminum foil-lined baking sheet.

5. Bake at 450° for 16 to 20 minutes or until crust is golden brown. Let stand 10 minutes before serving.

 Tips from a Kitchen of Reality

- I did not use ground beef. Instead I used more sausage and added pepperoni. I hate onions, so I left those out too. Moral of the story-- use pizza toppings to fill up the baking dish. :)

- I didn't saute anything, just cooked the meat and just mixed it all together. - I used pizza sauce instead of doctored up pasta sauce. I had it already, so I used it. It was a much smaller jar-- but I added the little bit of water I used to rinse out the jar too and the dish didn't turn out dry at all. - I cut the pizza dough to fit the top of the dish but didn't chill it or anything. No need.

- Super quick prep time just make sure you let it set for about 10 minutes before serving.... otherwise it will be soupy.